Facing Fear with an Open Mind

When you catch yourself in this special place, full of confusion, self-doubt and anxiety, this is where the real strength comes in…

Welcome, the newest member of the FP blog team, FP Jenna! We hope you love her and her point of view as much as we do.

What scares you? Is it going away to college, and leaving your family and friends behind? Is it taking that job offer across the country, plunging yourself into a new city, all alone? Maybe it’s something as simple as talking in front of a group of people. For me, it used to be all of the above, and more. I feared the unknown, I was scared to approach strangers, and moving away from where I felt most comfortable was a daunting thought.

But I can remember the exact moment when I decided to make a switch in my life. A switch from comfort and safety, to uncertainty and thrill. I progressively realized that I was the only variable standing in the way of my personal growth. As much as family and friends can support you along the way, there is nothing more invigorating than pushing yourself past your perceived boundaries. That newfound sense of pride when you look back at the strength it took to get there will ignite the inner confidence that lies in your fire.
However, we don’t always achieve the results we are looking for. With each victory, you feel energized, but with each setback, discouragement may set in. When you catch yourself in this special place, full of confusion, self-doubt and anxiety, this is where the real strength comes in. Are you going to stand back, or stand up? How can you take feelings of exhaustion and discomfort, and transform them into energy that will propel you forward? It’s simpler than you’d think, yet one of the most difficult practices to wrap your head around.

“So in order to have something to think about, there are times you simply must stop thinking. Well, how do you do that? The first rule is: Don’t try to! Because if you do you will be like someone trying to make rough waters smooth with a flat iron, and all that will do is stir it up. So in the same way as a muddy turbulent pool quiets itself when left alone, you have to know how to leave your mind alone, it will quiet itself.”— Alan Watts

When you tune your vibrations to this level of serenity, a clear decision will present itself, with the gentle push needed to overcome your next obstacle. After all, fear is only an illusion that our minds create. Once we recognize that, we can start to slow down our thoughts, quiet the frightful chatter and reach mental clarity.

I’m very afraid of heights. Sometimes I just think that someone comes from the back and push me off the roof or slope. Maybe that’s why I was incredulous people. But it does not give me rest. Recently, I have even tried banja jumping. It was just incredible, this feeling of flight – really amazing. But you know what the worst thing that I have… not stopped being afraid of height :( I don’t know what to do with it?!

Good little read, I truly needed that. Honestly, I’ve been wrapping my head around with thoughts and decisions for a while now. It has been very exhausting and just overwhelming. Fear can really limit a person from moving forward, finding themselves, and overall living to their fullest potential. I’m glad that I feel a bit more relieved and encouraged to continue forward with a positive outlook towards my present and future decisions. Thank you for sharing such uplifting words, I look forward to your future posts.

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3 years ago

Pico Girl

I normally don’t write comments on blog posts, but this post was just too moving and beautiful. Thank you for writing this. I have lately been facing with extreme anxiety and depression over events in my life. Hope and positivity had been replaced with fear and dread. Where I used to see glimmers of light, heavy fog seems to have taken over. But despite the fog and the clouds of fear, I have to realize that there is still a blue sky underneath it all. My favorite line of this post is “fear is only an illusion that our minds… Read more »

We are all afraid of changes at a certain point. We like consistency in everything and would be content with it if we didn’t want to move forward. And I truly agree that fears are just in our heads. But once you grow up and realize that the world is so big and there are so many things to explore, dreams and goals prevail over fears. Once I moved to the other city to get a better job, married early in spite of everyone’s thoughts, became a responsible mother of two kids and moved to the other country with my… Read more »

The post is good and it is inspiring. The article talks about Facing Fear with an Open Mind. It reveals that with each triumph, you feel thrilled, but with each setback, discouragement may set in. When you grasp yourself in this special place, thick with confusion, self-doubt, and nervousness, this is where the actual power comes in.